Sakellaropoulou: We want constructive cooperation with Slovenia

Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou said on Thursday at the official dinner hosted in her honour by Slovenian President Borut Pahor that "both Slovenia and Greece will continue to contribute jointly and with all their might, consistently and continuously."

Sakellaropoulou, who was on a two-day official visit to Slovenia, underlined that "as members of the large European family, we look forward to a continuous and constructive cooperation that will ensure a better common future."

"Greece and Slovenia attach the same self-evident commitment to fundamental values, such as law, peace and cooperation," she continued.

"And on the basis of international and European law, we are fulfilling our common European debt, which is becoming more urgent as Europe's role transcends its regional dimension and becomes global," the Greek president said.

She also expressed confidence that "both Slovenia and Greece will continue to contribute jointly and with all their might, consistently and continuously."

At the same time, she congratulated Slovenia on its forthcoming presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of this year.

Earlier, Sakellaropoulou laid a wreath at the Monument to the Victims of all Wars in the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana.

At a meeting with Pahor, Sakellaropoulou noted that the official visit, one of her first abroad amid the COVID-19 pandemic, reflected the high level of relations between the two countries, which also share values and principles as EU partners and NATO allies.

She added that the fact Deputy Minister for Economic Diplomacy, Kostas Fragogiannis, accompanied her to Slovenia underlined the potential for greater economic cooperation between the two countries.

The commitment of both countries to the benefits of the so-called 'green' COVID-19 vaccination certificate as key to tackling the pandemic effectively was also raised by Sakellaropoulou.

The Greek president was welcomed earlier by Parliament President Igor Zorčič, and she also visited the Diocesan Classical Gymnasium, where both presidents chatted with students.

She also met with Ljubljana mayor Zoran Janković.

On Twitter, she said "I visited Koper, the place of origin of Ioannis Kapodistrias."

"Two hundred years after the Greek War of Independence, we pay tribute, in Kapodistrias Square, to a personality who left indelible marks on Greek and European history," she added.

READ MORE: Ties between France and Greece are very strong in all areas, says President Sakellaropoulou.